In the early hours of Thursday, Israelis in Tel Aviv and the surrounding area were sent rushing to bomb shelters as an incoming missile was shot down by air defences.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said a missile was fired from Yemen towards Israeli territory and that it was partially intercepted.
Shrapnel fell in central Israel, including the missile warhead which directly hit a school in the Ramat Efal neighbourhood of Ramat Gan, it added. No injuries were reported.
Two hours after the attack, the IDF announced that its fighter jets had struck Houthi military targets on Yemen’s west coast and inland.
According to Houthi-run Al Masirah, seven people were killed by an Israeli strike on the Red Sea port of Salif, while two people were killed and one injured at the nearby Ras Issa oil terminal. Another two were reportedly injured at the port of Hudaydah, just to the south.
The TV channel also said that the power stations in Haiz and Dhahban, to the south and north of Sanaa, had been struck.
The director of the General Electricity Corporation, Meshaal al-Rifi, was cited as saying that the local electricity supply had been affected by damage to electricity distribution stations and fuel tanks.
“The Houthis have been carrying out attacks against Israel in violation of international law, and the Houthi regime is a threat to peace and security in the region,” IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said.
“Today, the IDF conducted precise strikes on Houthi military targets in Yemen – including ports and energy infrastructure in Sanaa, which the Houthis have been using in ways that effectively contributed to their military actions.”
An Israeli military official said the operation was “planned” and that the 14 jets and other aircraft involved were “already in the air” when the Houthis launched their missile, according to the Financial Times.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “After Hamas, Hezbollah and the Assad regime in Syria, the Houthis are almost the last arm of Iran’s axis of evil. They are finding out, and will find out, the hard way that whoever harms Israel – will pay a very heavy price.”
Defence Minister Israel Katz meanwhile warned Houthi leaders that “Israel’s long hand will reach you too”.
